MPPSC 2021 Prelims Paper-I · Question 69 of 100

Correct — C, Chhindwara. The Gotmar Mela ('stone-pelting fair') is held every year on the banks of the Jam river at Pandhurna, on the day after Pola (Bhadrapada amavasya), pitting the villagers of Pandhurna against those of neighbouring Sawargaon in a ritual stone-throwing contest across the river. Pandhurna falls within (undivided) Chhindwara district — the district under which this fair is traditionally and administratively identified.

• (a)Indore — Indore, MP's largest city and commercial hub, has no connection to the Gotmar fair; it is known instead for its street food and as the state's economic capital.
• (b)Mandsaur — Mandsaur, in northwestern MP, is unrelated to the Gotmar fair; it is known instead for its ancient sites and opium cultivation, not this Jam river festival.
• (d)Khargone — Khargone, in the Nimar region, is unrelated to the Gotmar fair; it is known for cotton cultivation, not this stone-throwing ritual.

The Gotmar Mela is a centuries-old folk fair unique to Pandhurna, where two villages divided by the Jam river — Pandhurna and Sawargaon — pelt each other with stones in a ritualised, legend-linked contest held annually around the Pola festival. It is one of MP's distinctive local fairs tested alongside other district-linked festivals.

MPPSC frequently pairs a lesser-known local fair with its host district — students must know the specific town/river/district combination rather than a general description of the fair. Note: Pandhurna, the fair's actual town, was carved out as its own separate district only in 2018 — for this 2021 exam (and in most references up to that point), it is identified with (undivided) Chhindwara district.

• Gotmar Mela: annual ritual stone-pelting fair between Pandhurna and Sawargaon villages
• Held on the banks of the Jam river, around the Pola festival (Bhadrapada amavasya)
• Administratively/traditionally linked to Chhindwara district (Pandhurna became a separate district only in 2018)
• The name 'Gotmar' combines 'got' (stone) and 'mar' (to hit)

• Picking Mandsaur or Khargone just because they are also MP districts with their own notable fairs/crops — the Gotmar-Pandhurna-Jam river combination is specific
• Forgetting that Pandhurna (post-2018) is now its own district, so newer sources may cite 'Pandhurna' instead of 'Chhindwara'

MPPSC tests fair-to-district pairings directly ('In which district is X fair held') — memorise the town + river + district triplet, not just the fair's name.

No directly related past PYQ was found.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  The Gotmar Mela is held annually on the banks of which river?

  • (a)Narmada
  • (b)Tapti
  • (c)Jam
  • (d)Betwa

  Answer(c) Jam — the fair takes place where the Jam river separates Pandhurna and Sawargaon.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  Which Madhya Pradesh festival involves a ritual stone-pelting contest between two villages across a river?

  • (a)Bhagoria
  • (b)Gotmar Mela
  • (c)Chandi Mata Mela
  • (d)Kalchuri Utsav

  Answer(b) Gotmar Mela — held between Pandhurna and Sawargaon on the Jam river.